John F. Kennedy Elementary School PTA plans playground fundraiser

KINGSTON, N.Y. -- Members of the John F. Kennedy Elementary Parent Teacher Association will hold a fundraising dinner to buy a new playground for the school from 5 to 9 p.m. March 2 at the Veterans of Foreign Wars headquarters on East Chester Street, according to one of the organizers.

Frank L. Meagher Elementary School closed in June, and its students merged with Kennedy starting this school year.

Principal Clark Waters has said the move basically doubled Kennedy's population, and students have to wait in line during recess to get a turn on playground equipment, which is on the Hasbrouck Park grounds adjacent to the school.

Jennifer Boughton, one of the organizers of the effort, has also pointed to safety concerns among many parents about the existing equipment children had been using. Kennedy's students are among the district's most impoverished populations.

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One of the park's swingset poles comes out of the ground when weight is put on it, and that set is cordoned off with "caution" tape. Wood is chipping on the Play Palace, and a slippery coating on part of the structure frequently causes children to fall, parents have said.

Open-toed shoes are not allowed on the Play Palace because the coating causes infections when students are poked by pieces of jagged wood, Boughton has noted.

The cost of admission to March's fundraiser is $20 per person. Boughton and fellow parent Karen Seery will be cooking, providing a buffet-style dinner with a choice of cider house chicken with glazed apples, marinated London broil, pizza stuffed Italian loaf, or veggie lasagna with sides of mashed potatoes with the choice of corn, green beans, or a zucchini and squash medley. Drinks include coffee, soda, water, and a cash bar.

Boughton said there will be door prizes, raffles for gift cards, and "several baskets filled with goodies."